Jindal planning to see Assumption Parish sinkhole for himself

UPDATED 3:47 PM CDT Mar 11, 2013

BATON ROUGE, La. -

Gov. Bobby Jindal says next week he'll visit the site of a massive sinkhole that has swallowed nine acres of land in swampy Assumption Parish. It's been seven months since the sinkhole forced the evacuation of 150 homes.

Residents displaced since early August have strongly criticized the governor's absence.

In a new hands-on approach, Jindal visited Monday with parish leaders and area lawmakers at the governor's mansion to discuss the state's continuing response.

He also says he's meeting Wednesday with Texas Brine officials to push for buyouts for the evacuated families.

Scientists say the sinkhole formed after the collapse of an underground salt cavern operated by Houston-based Texas Brine Co. LLC, which extracted brine and piped it to nearby petrochemical facilities.

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